“You look wonderful,” he said, smiling.
She tried to smile back, craving normalcy.
“I brought you this.” From behind his back, he pulled a single daisy, simply and fresh.
“Th-thanks,” she stammered in a breathless voice. “It’s perfect.” How could he have known? The simple single bloom, her favorite flower.
Behind her, Connie cleared her throat, rising from the couch. “Excuse me for interrupting this magic moment, you two,” she laughed. “I’m Connie Rodriguez, Cindy’s friend and amazing babysitter. Actually I’m Consuela Maria Elena Rodriguez, but who needs to get technical? I’ll put the flower in water and shut up now.”
Cindy found her voice again. “Yes, this is Connie. And this is her daughter, Jasmine. And this is my Morgan and Hannah. Kids, say hi to Mr. Highfield.”
The crew on the couch pulled their gaze away from the TV for a minute. “Hi, Mr. Highfield,” they said in unison.
“You wanna donut?” Morgan said in a very grown-up voice. “We’re not going to eat them anymore because Hannah feels like she’s going to barf.”
“A nice offer, but I think I’ll pass,” he laughed. He squatted down and looked Morgan in the eye. “You take good care of your sister, okay?”
“Okay.” All focus was back on the video.
“Is it still okay if we go? I mean, if she isn’t feeling well,” Prince offered.
Prince was helping Cindy with her shawl as Connie came back in the room.
“You two have fun. And don’t rush. And don’t worry about the munchkin. She just ate too much dinner, I think.”
“Call me if you need me. I mean it.” Cindy was hesitant.
“Go.”
They went.
Cindy wobbled a little in her shoes as she maneuvered the front steps, and her heart still beat a little faster than normal. But she took a deep breath, and climbed into the Aston Martin. The night had begun.
Chapter Ten
The subdued lighting of the restaurant Prince chose was romantic. Candlelight flickered on each white-covered table, and crystal glassware sparkled in its glow. A lifetime of high-class dining had taught him these things. His mother had not had story reading high on her to-do list, but she had instilled every aspect of manners and class in her youngest son.
Princeton Highfield knew how to show a lady a classy time. A gnawing ache clawed at his stomach, though he knew it didn’t show in his calm outside demeanor as they entered the restaurant. Far beyond the usual posturing of his high-society social life, this one time, this night meant something personal and important.
This woman whose elbow he gently held as they entered the dining room had become precious. He wanted her to enjoy the night. When had this happened? How had this happened? He had been on so many dates before. Nothing had affected him like this. His mouth was dry, wondering. Would she like it? She had been so quiet in the car as they zipped through the light weekend traffic.
“Welcome, Mr. Highfield.” The maitre d’ was welcoming but very formal. “Your table is ready as you requested.” He led them to a quiet alcove in the corner of the restaurant.
Prince heard the short intake of breath, the happy sigh she made as she saw it.
“Oh, so lovely!” A small crystal vase of daisies sat in the middle of the table, next to the welcoming candle. The elegant place settings glistened.
He relaxed as the tension ebbed from his body, victory surging in its place. A winning goal. He smiled. “The daisies were my idea. I requested the daisies.”
She turned and looked up at him happily as he held her chair. “Daisies! How did you ever know how much I love daisies?”
“Not too hard to guess. I saw the trail of flowers in the library. And the pattern of your dress the other day. And you are a daisy kind of girl.” He sat across the table, watching her.
She looked around the room with obvious awe and avid interest.
Does she have any idea of the effect she has with that twinkle in her eyes?
“It’s such a beautiful place. The history of this old building, the gleam of these elegant wood walls, and the tables are so warm and inviting.”
“This is one of the oldest restaurants in Philadelphia.” He was suddenly very humble. “I-I just wanted this night to be special.”
She grinned. “Well, so far, you’re a hit, Mr. Highfield. But don’t go thinking this is our first date. The hot dog counts. Lunch in the park the other day counts.”
He laughed out loud. How did she do that? Make him feel so unsure of himself one minute, and relaxed and fanatically happy the next?
“No argument. Nothing like that hot dog. I’ll remember it forever.”
Her smile faded. “I’m more comfortable with the park than all this elegance, you know. And my trips to restaurants usually are about kiddie meals and French fries. This is an adventure for me. You and I live in two different worlds. Just remember that.”
“Stick around, and you might find our worlds are more alike than you think, Cindy.”
“No, I don’t think so.” She looked at him intently, talking as much to herself as to the man across the well-set table. “While it’s an adventure, it’s not my first time visiting your world. I was more daring a few years ago, and was involved with a man who came from your world. It didn’t work out.”
“Maybe it was the man. Not the world.”
She ran her finger softly over the swirled pattern of the silver fork handle. “Maybe.” The eyes meeting hers were dark, all of a sudden, deep, and her stomach contracted.
“Sounds like you were hurt, Cindy. Whatever he did, I’m sorry it happened. Tell me.”
“Not that much to tell.” She cleared her throat. “It’s the usual story. Naïve girl swept off her feet by the handsome rich guy. I met him when I was at LaSalle University. For a long time, I believed our relationship was a forever thing. But it ended. Suddenly.”
“In a scene?” he said softly.
She grimaced. “In a church. In a wedding dress. He thought better of the whole thing. He just didn’t show up.”
“Ouch. Horrible.”
“But understandable, looking back. His parents had been against it from the start. That was tough enough. But then, all of a sudden there were the kids. My sister died, and Morgan and Hannah were in my life. I guess he couldn’t handle it. Which is true for most. But it was hard to be surprised like that. It hurt.”
She couldn’t believe she was saying these things out loud. These painful memories had been buried away, mourned privately in her heart, spoken only to Connie at the depth of her despair, and even then, only once.
He looked angry on her behalf, and she gave him points for that. Probably he was a nice guy, as well as looking so great. But that didn’t change things. She had learned to keep her feet planted firmly on terra firma, to face reality with her head on straight.
Though you are here in this romantic restaurant, with this handsome man, and softly glowing candles. She chided herself. It was a bit like poking a tiger with a stick, daring him to chomp, wasn’t it?
“Understandable?” he said in a low steady voice emphasizing the anger in his gaze. “It is not understandable. It’s an outrage. I’m very sorry, Cindy. And again, I’ll reiterate. Not all men.”
She smiled the, eager to change the subject, to escape the memories of the past, the confusing feelings of the moment.
“That was a long time ago. Another time, another life. And I’ve forgotten most of the social graces I learned at the time. Here,” she said, lifting a fork with a slight smile “You may have to remind me which utensil to use for what. There is more silverware on this table than I have in my whole house. You rich people use a lot of cutlery, that’s for sure.” She wrinkled her nose.
“Just start from the outside and work your way in. It’s not rocket science.”
If he had noticed the subject change, he let it pass. “The good news,” she said, rubbing her hands together with eager enthusiasm, “Is that all
those forks indicate there will be a lot of food coming. Which is good. I’m famished. Don’t expect me to be a dainty eater, Princeton. I eat enough for an army.”
“I’ll alert the troops.” He motioned to the waiting server.
****
The meal was like no other he had ever experienced. While he had been to this restaurant before, and had even eaten the same meal, tonight was pretty much like traveling to another planet. The important ingredient was Cindy—as if she exuded some weird kind of energy force, charging the air around her, and bringing light and laughter. This realization made him feel both puzzled and excited. He was not an “energy source/metaphysical guy.” In fact, so far in his privileged life, he had been known as a skeptic, a no-nonsense person.
In fact, he had gone to Princeton for his studies. Princeton and Princeton and “staid” were practically synonymous, in his book. So where were these thoughts coming from?
There had been such a flash of sadness when she had talked about the wedding thing, and it had affected him. But even more, the instant and matter-of-fact way she had put it all away and changed the subject, turning away sympathy and discussion had affected him even more. She was complex. Not exactly filled with trust. And it was true, their lives were different. He didn’t want to think about it. He just wanted to revel in her presence.
She made him laugh. She made everyone laugh. By the time the appetizers arrived, she knew the first and last names of both the server, and the busboy. By the time the salads were being peppered, she knew the chef was from a little village outside of Paris, and that the server was also a registered basketball referee for his son’s local league. In fact, she had been invited to come and watch little Thomas play.
Prince watched in wonder. Truth was, in the several meals he had enjoyed on prior visits to this hallowed establishment, he had never even noticed the server, except that the man provided prompt, courteous, and unobtrusive service. He hadn’t really thought of him as a person. Truth was, this visit was much more fun.
He listened. He talked. He ate. And Cindy ate. Boy, did she eat. He was used to the picky, high-maintenance eating of the women in his social circles. Three bites of salad, a piece of expensive fish pushed around on the plate, and a bevy of comments about calories and carbs were the usual fare. Cindy didn’t prescribe to that food formula.
“I’ll take the prime rib, cooked well. And extra sour cream with the baked potato.”
The piece of meat was as big as a briefcase. As he watched her dive into it gleefully, he grinned. And enjoyed his own meal even more.
When the dessert cart was presented, he thought she just might dive in.
“Oh,” she exclaimed with a laugh. “I can only pick one?”
So they settled on two, and shared.
Over coffee, she told him more about her love of children’s literature, about her dream to someday publish her own children’s stories. He felt humbled somehow, to hear her heartfelt dreams. A feeling built inside, that same self contempt he had experienced in the car on the way to the library, when she had asked him what he was passionate about. But this time, he didn’t run away from the feeling.
“I wish I was enthused over something like that. I wish I had a dream.”
She looked at him, face thoughtful. “No goals? Nothing you want to strive for?”
He shook his head. “Not yet. Just following the path laid out for me. Expected of me.”
He waited for her to make fun of him. But he could hear no negativity in her voice.
“Funny how we can be so different. My zest for goals probably is based in necessity. You know, necessity is the mother of invention, as they say.”
“I admit it; I’ve not had to worry about necessities. But now I’m thinking about that question. What do I want to strive for?”
“You’ll figure it out.” She glanced at her watch. “Hate to say it, but the hour’s getting late, and Connie’s with the kids.”
“Okay. Can we do this again? I had a great time.” A distant look came into her eyes. Conflict darted across her face.
“I don’t know, Princeton. It’s just not wise for me to get involved. My life is more than a little complicated.”
“I will make it my intention to convince you otherwise. Think about it. You don’t seem like a person lacking courage.” He saw her eyes flash as he laid down the gauntlet.
“Courage? I have courage. I just have a strong base of common sense.”
He paid the check, left a hefty tip. They stood, heading for the door. “My world isn’t so bad. Admit it. You had fun.”
She laughed. “Okay, I had fun.” She looked around at the elegant restaurant, nodded, and then her smile disappeared. “Let’s just say, it’s a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live here.”
They were close to the exit when the door opened before them, and five well-dressed people entered, all were laughing.
“Princeton!” A man’s voice boomed. “So here you are. We tried to reach you this afternoon so you could join us. Look, Haley, here he is! And you thought he had fallen off the planet.”
Prince stiffened.
Haley Carrington’s smile was tight. Her gaze registered Cindy’s presence, and narrowed a little, sliding to Prince’s side, slipping her arm into the crook of his elbow. With a motion as smooth as any well-trained basketball player, she had placed herself right between Prince and the date she had decided to ignore. “There you are, handsome. So good to see you. We need to confirm plans for the weekend to the winery tours on the coast. Did you forget?” She practically purred.
The color rose in Cindy’s cheeks, as if she were momentarily stunned by the blatant maneuver. Her mouth opened, but she didn’t speak.
Anger rose, thick and hot, in the normally unflappable Princeton Highfield, as he watched her startled face. Stiffly, he withdrew his arm from the clingy Haley, and stepped behind her. He placed himself back at Cindy’s side, tucked his arm around her waist and pulled her close. The motion caught her off balance, and when she started to stumble, he pulled her even closer.
“Cindy, let me introduce this motley gang. Matt, Megan, Frederick, Arlene. And Haley. This is Cindy Castle. As you can see, we were just leaving, so we’ll have to catch up another time.”
Haley’s glare now shot daggers, even though her voice still purred. “But Princey, the weekend!”
“You know when it was brought up, I never committed to the west coast weekend, Haley. I have other plans.” He kept his voice polite, but firm. He also kept his arm firmly around Cindy’s waist.
“Well, it’s good to see you, old man. We have to catch up,” smiled Matt, oblivious to the drama in front of him. “We heard about your library performance as a bear last week from Haley’s sister. Quite a good laugh. Whiskers and all. Something about a bookish little librarian. Aren’t you quite the charmer?” He paused.
In the flash of an instant, Matt’s gaze went from Princeton to Cindy and then back again, as realization dawned.
“Ahh, and it looks as if I’ve put my foot right into it. Cindy, I presume you are the librarian in question?” Matt had the grace to laugh, as he looked her straight in the eye.
“Guilty as charged.” Cindy retorted evenly, glad her voice had returned. “That’s me. Bookish whisker creator, extraordinaire. Feel free to come by the library at any time if you want to participate and take a role in the animal transformation.”
“Only the strong dare,” Prince added. “Yes, this is my enchanting story teller.” His smile was warm and open. But inside, his feelings were spinning. “And as I said, we’ve got to run.”
He led her out the door, past the pouting face of Haley Carrington and friends, with a few parting goodbyes, kicking himself how even in this simple situation, he had not been able to keep Cindy from feeling apart. The streetlights beamed down, making Chestnut Street as bright as daylight. He walked by her side, each step feeling a little like he left a part of his old world behind.
****
/> The warm breeze brushed her cheeks as they hit the street. In an instant with the entrance of Prince’s cohorts, the restaurant had changed from cozy to suffocating. She was shaken, though she didn’t want to admit it, even to herself. Haley’s look of disdain and subsequent dismissal stung. Prince’s gallant rescue redeemed her belief in his character, but it didn’t remove the absolute evidence their social worlds were light years apart. He was a part of a lifestyle operating on a different level than hers. She was clear on that, and it was even okay.
She didn’t even aspire anymore to a lifestyle of the rich and famous. Her simple little life was quite enough. The truth was, she didn’t want to value people according to their economic, social, or ethnic status. She made it her mission to value people according to their hearts. It had hurt, however, to feel critical judging coming like a laser beam from Haley Carrington’s glamorously made-up eyes.
“Sorry about that. There’s nothing between us, you know. Haley and I. My parents have tried to push that relationship for years.” He walked with his hands in his pockets.
Cindy wrapped her evening shawl around herself, holding it tightly in place with crossed arms. “No problem. You don’t have to explain a thing. Though perhaps the time will come when you explain it to her. That was more than a little embarrassing. This is just what I was trying to say though, Prince. We live in two different worlds. I’m pretty good at facing reality.”
“It’s the same planet, Cindy. Not so different. Can we just agree to see how it is? To get to know each other?” They drove up the boulevard from Center City toward Cindy’s neighborhood with the top down, stars twinkling above, the moon a curvy crescent in the sky.
Cindy put her head back on the seat and took in the expanse of sky, enjoyed the warm air as it played games with her hair. The night was beautiful. And he was a nice man. In reality. She sighed.
“I’m happy to get to know you, Princeton Highfield. Just don’t expect too much. And know I don’t either. Being friends is just fine.”
“I’m happy you have such an open mind.” He grinned, showing he had won.
Cindy's Prince Page 9